[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 95 (Tuesday, July 8, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H4893-H4894]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 REPUBLICAN TAX PLAN FAVORS THE WEALTHY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Pallone] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, my Republican colleagues are obviously 
concerned that the media and the American people are beginning to 
understand that their tax plan heavily favors the wealthy and that, if 
their plan is made into law, it would explode the deficit. Rather than 
balance the budget, it would unbalance the budget, and that would 
really be a great tragedy since so many people have worked so hard to 
achieve this balanced budget agreement.
  I believe that Congress should balance the budget, and I also believe 
that we can cut taxes responsibly and in a way that maintains the goals 
of continued balanced budgets beyond the year 2000. Democrats feel that 
any tax cuts should be targeted primarily to working Americans. 
Unfortunately, the Republicans have thus far been successful in cutting 
a large portion of the taxes for their country club buddies.
  Republican tax breaks focus on big business, special interests and 
wealthy families, while limiting tax cuts for education and families 
with children. They offer million dollar tax exemptions instead of 
helping working families. Democrats, on the other hand, strongly 
believe that the Republican values from this debate are out of sync 
with the average American. Democrats and President Clinton have offered 
alternatives that make better use of the tax cut moneys and focus them 
on middle-income families.
  Mr. Speaker, over the weekend Treasury Secretary Rubin released a 
report that better illustrates how the Republican proposals primarily 
benefit wealthy individuals over the 10-year budget window. In 
addition, Secretary Rubin expressed serious concern regarding the 
potential for the Republican tax cuts to explode the deficit.
  According to the Treasury report, which examined the last year of the 
Republican proposals, only 38 percent of the tax cuts would be for 
middle class families under the House proposal, while 55 percent of the 
tax cuts would go to the affluent. The President's tax cuts, on the 
other hand, are targeted more to the middle class. Eighty-three percent 
of the tax cuts under President Clinton's proposal would be targeted to 
the middle class, and only 10 percent would be targeted to the wealthy.
  Now, there was another study conducted by Citizens for Tax Justice, 
which illustrated that over half of the tax cuts will benefit those 
making nearly a quarter of $1 million and above. Someone making nearly 
$650,000 can expect to receive somewhere near $22,000 in tax benefits, 
while someone making $44,500 can expect only a few hundred dollars. And 
those in the bottom 40 percent of the income distribution, but still 
working families, can actually expect to pay more taxes under the 
Republican proposal, which certainly is not fair, in my opinion.
  The differences in the Democratic and Republican approaches in this 
budget plan are clear, and I will continue to urge Republicans to wake 
up and listen to the American people. The Republican tax cuts focus on 
short-term profits and financial gains. Democrats emphasize investment 
in education to create a highly trained work force for the future.
  Republicans penalize low-income workers by not cutting their taxes 
and also treating people who are working their way off the welfare 
rolls as second-class citizens. Democrats, on the other hand, believe 
that low-income workers should not be excluded from the tax cuts and 
are eager to assist welfare recipients in becoming productive citizens.
  The contrasts are so clear, Mr. Speaker: Republicans have always 
favored the corporate tax breaks and the million dollar exemptions, 
while Democrats have been the fighters for the middle class. Again, the 
argument is no longer about whether we should balance the budget or cut 
taxes but about how we should do it.
  I believe the Democrat approach is the right approach. It is 
certainly not too late. We are now in the process of reconciling the 
budget. The Republicans really have to move to lighten the burden on 
low- and middle-income families if they are to expect that the 
President is going to approve this budget. And they cannot break the 
promises that were made to working families as part of this budget 
deal.
  That was the commitment, that this budget deal was going to balance 
the budget and that the tax cuts were going to be mostly for working 
families. And the Republicans have to live up to that commitment. So 
far they have not, but it is not too late, and I am hopeful that we 
will work in that direction and that we can come together on a plan 
that both balances the

[[Page H4894]]

budget and, at the same time, primarily helps working families.
  That is the only fair way to do it, Mr. Speaker.

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